Chapter 457: All for One
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 457: All for One
“You’re special.”
I don’t lie often. What I say is usually the truth. No, not usually—it’s 100% the truth. Have I ever lied before?
“Tyr. Many people have wishes. Everyone holds a wish in their heart. But just because they have a wish, can I grant it as I please? A wish I can't even understand?”
I’m a mind reader, so I can read hearts, but that doesn't mean I truly know. How can I grant a wish to eat something delicious? I don't know what they’d find delicious.
“To make a wish come true, you need three things: a concrete and clear goal, the ability to reach it, and the will to continue the journey. Surprisingly, most people fail at the first hurdle. They don't even know what they truly want.”
Held in my arms, Tyr listened quietly. Trying to read her mind and craft the answer she wanted… would be meaningless. I had to convince her with sincerity. Right now, Tyr's emotions were erratic and…
She had stored ‘something’ of herself in that shadow, so I couldn't even read her completely.
“But Tyr, you were different. You had a clear goal. You were determined to try as long as there was a way, and though you strayed a little, you nearly succeeded. You had already saved yourself. That's why I saved you, too. It just so happened that I had the means.”
Even if someone wishes for world peace, if they don't know what peace is, they can't possibly achieve it. Even if they compromise and aim for a world where people don't fight each other, they have no way to make it a reality. They could achieve it by beating all the fighting humans to death, but someone whose goal is world peace would rather give up than choose that method.
“So, even if I say I'll grant wishes, it's not always possible. If someone doesn't even know their own wish, I'd sooner laugh at them than grant it. You, Tyr, are already a special existence to me.”
In that sense, Tyr was truly special. After so long, her wish should have weathered away, but perhaps because she was a vampire, she had held onto that desire from long ago. In the isolated environment of the Abyss, I came to fully understand her wish, and inheriting that will, I carved a heart into her heart.
When you think about it, Tyr was the first person whose wish I granted purely. I spoke to her with sincerity and truth.
[In the end… you won't say that only I am special, will you.]
Of course, it didn't work.
I couldn't see Tyr's expression clearly. But her shadow formed a bitter smile on its own. At the same time, as if struck by a dangerous idea, it raised a hand with a smile that seemed to tear at the seams. Sensing something ominous, I quickly said,
“Tyr, you are a sufficiently special person.”
[I'm sorry, Hu. I am a greedy and ugly woman. 'Sufficiently' won't be enough for me.]
The shadow rose. Darkness began to gather around me. She hadn't given a specific command, but… Tyr's shadow moved to carry out her will.
Her power was slipping further from her human side. I grew anxious and quickly added,
“I'll be honest. Right now, you are the only one. The only one whose wish I've granted directly.”
[But you won't be the only one in the future.]
“No, I mean. I'm not a prophet, I can't know the future.”
Even though I mentioned being a prophet, Tyr just tightened her grip on me.
[My emotions, my senses. Everything you've gifted me is guiding me. It tells me to hold on, even if it's ugly, to never let go again. If I weren't truly alive, I might have resigned myself and let it pass… But now, I, who sing the song of life, am screaming at myself to obsess and to cling.]
“Hahaha. To be the object of obsession for someone so beautiful, cute, and noble. I don't know what to do with myself.”
[Do not worry. I will prepare a place for your body.]
Smiling, Tyr wrapped her arms more tightly around my neck and kissed me. Her body was practically hanging off me, and I had to bear her full weight. Even as our lips moved ceaselessly, I was frantically racking my brain.
Dammit. What is this? How did it come to this?
Should I lie to escape the immediate crisis? Whisper words of eternal love and vow to be with her forever?
I could have. But the result would be the same. Tyr would have made those words a reality! By turning me into a vampire! This was the best I could do!
Perhaps sensing the unusual atmosphere, Hilde interjected with an awkward smile.
“Um~. It's nice that you two are sharing your love~. But in the middle of the street... Kyaaak!”
A black hand snatched Hilde. It happened without any warning, too fast for her to react. Hilde gasped, but the power, which was Tyr herself, was too strong to escape even with the Qi Art of a Six General.
[The negotiations are over, Hilde.]
“Agh, ugh…! Tyrkanzyaka!”
[Hu will stay here with me. I will remain on friendly terms with the Military State. And I will let you leave alive.]
“B-but! My father, in the Military State…. Kyaaaaaaak!”
Crunch. As the shadow hand squeezed, there was a sound of something twisting. Hilde's arms and legs, sticking out from between the fingers of the hand, seemed to be bent far from their original positions.
Watching the agonized Hilde, Tyr warned her softly, devoid of emotion.
[This is the last mercy I will show the Crusaders. Be satisfied that I promised you a sufficient outcome.]
“Augh…!”
For Tyr, this was a huge concession. Normally, she would have killed anyone from the Sanctum without a second thought, but this time she at least asked questions. I wonder if you could call this becoming more human. The person on the receiving end was in agony, though.
[Hu. I am sorry. But I will not let you go. Even if you come to hate me.]
My situation had become quite difficult, but…
“This is what it means to be human. You've finally become a little more human.”
[More human? It sounds as if you're saying I wasn't before.]
“You acted that way yourself, more than I did. You acted as if you were some kind of natural phenomenon. This is much better than that.”
The shadow's grip loosened slightly. She had acted so recklessly, prepared to be hated, so my unexpected reaction seemed to puzzle her.
“Tyr. I think you're misunderstanding something. I don't particularly hate it, you know? Being here, being with you. I won't try to run away just because I'm being swayed by something else.”
Tyr was making a huge misunderstanding. She thought I would hate her if she restrained me. It was a shame that her conclusion led her to restrain me anyway, even if it meant being hated.
A really big misunderstanding. Why does she think I'd always hate being restrained?
“Is there anything in life that goes exactly as you want? If you're trapped in the Abyss, you live in the Abyss. If you're trapped in the Military State, you live in the Military State. Tyr, you seem to be mistaken, thinking the Beast Kings are some grand existence. Most Beast Kings just... live.”
[Just live? From what I've seen, they are bound by their beasts.]
“That's only when they have the luxury. Why do you think Azzy was in the Abyss? Because a dog's brain couldn't figure a way out. Why was I living so wretchedly within the Military State's system? Because I had no foundation or ability to go anywhere else. You might think beasts do as they please, but you're wrong. That 'as they please' is only when they can afford to. Usually, they adapt to their given environment. I say adapt, but it's really just submission.”
I shrugged and gently placed a hand on Tyr's shoulder.
“That's especially true for me. I've lost my power. My strength is so ordinary that I'm weaker than most people. That's why I always have to use something else. I can't achieve anything with my own power alone.”
[In that case….]
“However, Tyr. You'll have to be prepared. If you truly love me.”
Restraining me is fine. But I need to get something out of it, too.
It was a terrible thing to do, but I held Tyr's emotions hostage and said,
“You have to make sure my time in the Duchy isn't a waste. Wouldn't that make for a mutually satisfying honeymoon?”
Tyr was going to restrain me anyway. In that case, since I'm being shackled, I might as well suck her dry. All while boasting that my shackles are the best.
[A honeymoon….]
Pleased by the sound of the word, Tyr smiled brightly and whispered.
[As long as you do not leave me. I will give you anything.]
Separate from my predicament… this was quite appealing. A powerful older woman with a nation and strength, who was also incomparably beautiful, was obsessed with me. It was a situation anyone would dream of.
What's really going to change? Being pushed around is something that's always happened to me.
“Now, now. There are a lot of people watching. Let's go inside.”
[Do the eyes of others bother you so much?]
“No, but we should still be mindful. We live in a world with other people, after all.”
[There will be no need for that.]
‘When Hu was in the Abyss, he didn't respond to the wishes of other humans. Even as the King of Humans, he can't grant the wishes of people he's never met… If I can keep him from meeting others as much as possible, even Hu won't change any further.’
She's gone off the deep end in a weird way. What, she's going to lock me up so I can't meet anyone else? It's certainly an effective method against me right now, but…
[Let us go to the castle, Hu.]
“Wait a minute. There was a bit of an accident in our room, and now there's a huge hole in the wall.”
[The bricks that make up Plenilune Castle are steeped in blood. They can be restored in an instant.]
“The bed fell and broke, too. We at least need a bed, don't we? I'm the Progenitor's consort, after all. I can't be expected to sleep on the hard, bare floor.”
A vampire might be fine sleeping in a coffin, but for humans, only the dead sleep like that. No matter how confined I am, I don't want to become a corpse.
Despite my reasonable protest, Tyr glared at me and shot back.
[Are you that reluctant to return to the castle?]
“How did you arrive at that conclusion?”
She's sensitive. I'd better not do anything that could be misunderstood for a while, at least until her suspicion dies down.
“It doesn't matter where we are, as long as I'm by your side. You could just get us a room at an inn.”
[Huhu, that's right. Now you're finally saying something I like.]
Huh? What was?
Before I could ask, the shadow rose. It swelled up without a presence, like the shadow of a ghost. No one noticed when it appeared, but once it was there, everyone became aware of its existence.
Screams rang out, but only for a moment. A pitch-black darkness covered my peripheral vision, and the next thing I knew, I was inside the shadow. I belatedly realized that Tyr's shadow was holding me like a playing jack.
Feeling as if I were cut off from the world, my body was tossed about. A dizzying sensation, as if I'd truly become a playing jack, shook me a few times before I was gently set down.
What is this place? Indoors? I was in the middle of the street just a moment ago, but now I was in a secluded room where I couldn't sense a single presence. Feeling a sense of dissonance at the changed scenery, I asked.
“Where are we?”
[A villa. It's a good place to spend a few days.]
“A few days? Aren't you busy?”
[A few days pass in the blink of an eye, do they not?]
There's a limit to vampire time. A few days right after a rebellion? Don't you have to clean up the aftermath?
[Valdamir will take care of the gist of it.]
“It's not good to dump all your work on a competent subordinate just because you have one.”
[It is your fault. Had you not kept trying to push me away, I would have entrusted less to him.]
Tyr smiled precariously as she perched on the edge of the bed, gazing at me. As if she wouldn't let me out of her sight for even a moment.
Dammit. How did it come to this.